3 Things to Know About the Trump Administration's Warning Shots on NATO

Feb. 27, 2017

Media Outlet: Washington Post

“Americans cannot care more for your children’s security than you do,” U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis cautioned NATO defense ministers in Brussels in mid-February, urging European allies to get serious about providing for their own defense.

Mattis put the alliance on notice that U.S. patience was finite and suggested that Washington’s commitment to European security was potentially at risk, noting, “[If] your nations do not want to see America moderate its commitment to the alliance, each of your capitals needs to show its support for our common defense.”

Do Mattis’s warnings represent a genuine shift in U.S. policy on European security? Here are three things to know.